


Gotta Catch Your Heart

by Sosh_022



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Champion Hermione, F/F, Fluff, Pokemon AU, Top Coordinator Fleur, glasses count as a disguise, hermione in glasses, kinda celebrity au because they're both celebrities i guess, kinda rival to lovers au, no beta we faint like pokemon, opposite of a meet cute, secret identity shenanigans, this is sort of a crack-ish fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-29
Updated: 2020-12-29
Packaged: 2021-03-10 18:35:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28401789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sosh_022/pseuds/Sosh_022
Summary: Fleurmione Pokemon AU where Hermione is the top Pokemon trainer and Fleur is the top Pokemon coordinator and they meet.
Relationships: Fleur Delacour/Hermione Granger
Comments: 17
Kudos: 116





	Gotta Catch Your Heart

**Author's Note:**

> Look I-  
> I have no words...  
> This will be a _short_ little side project because I _cannot_ have another WIP but this idea would not leave me alone. If this becomes more than three chapters, istg I will scream. Enjoy.

_“Miss Granger, now that you’ve bested the Champions in the Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn regions, what is your next conquest?”_

_“Miss Granger, we have reason to believe that you’re aiming for the Sinnoh region next. Can you confirm?”_

_“Miss Granger, do you have a second to tell us about your match with Hoenn Champion Steven Stone last week?”_

_“Miss Granger, is it true that the Sinnoh region Champion Cynthia reached out to you with an invitation inviting you to go visit her?”_

_“Miss Granger, do you have any training tips for the young beginning trainers out there who want to be just like you? What is your secret?”_

_“Miss Granger, people are calling you the best Pokemon trainer to have ever existed in this generation. Do you have any comments?”_

_“Miss Granger, how do you think the death of your mother affected your motivation to become the best Pokemon trainer in the world?”_

_“Miss Granger, why do you avoid the Alola region? Isn’t it your home region?”_

_“Miss Granger, have you ever considered competing in Pokemon contests?”_

_“Miss Granger...Miss Granger...Miss Granger…”_

* * *

Hermione took in a deep slow breath, savoring the way the cool air filled her lungs, so fresh it almost hurt. 

“We’re nearly there!”

Hermione opened her eyes, casting a glance downwards past the puffy white clouds below as the wind whistled loudly past her ears. She could just barely make out the vague city line of Arrowroot Town hundreds of feet below them. 

“Get ready for landing, kid!” 

There was a flash of long blonde hair glinting under the bright sun, as a Garchomp swooped past her, dropping into a sharp dive. Hermione gently leaned forward, maneuvering her Dragonite to follow at a safer speed. 

“Hold on tight, Rowlet,” Hermione told the owl Pokemon nestled inside her arms. Rowlet chirped in response, his eyes widening in panic as Dragonite increased her speed. 

“ChiiiiiirrrrrrrrrRRRRRRRAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!” 

By the time they touched down on the outskirts of town, Hermione was half deaf in one ear. Her guide stood waiting several feet away, arms crossed with playful impatience. 

Hermione slid off of Dragonite, glad to have her feet planted firmly on the ground again. Rowlet flopped down pathetically onto the grass next to her, groaning unhappily. She rubbed his little round head in sympathy. 

“You okay there Rowlet?”

He chirped back weakly. She never quite understood how it was possible for a flying Pokemon to get air sickness, but her Rowlet was a special one. 

Next to her, Dragonite let out a quiet growl and nudged her in the side, vying for attention. 

“You were amazing buddy,” she laughed, giving her large belly a fond pat, before turning towards the kind woman who’d volunteered to be her guide. 

The woman wore a long black fur coat despite the warm spring temperatures. Her long wavy blonde hair went down to her knee and a single grey eye poked out from underneath her side bangs. She was a force to be reckoned with and Hermione knew many Pokemon trainers that trained their entire lives just to battle this powerhouse of a woman even once. 

She was, of course, none other than Cynthia, the Champion of the Sinnoh region. 

“You know, I expected you to be more of a daredevil,” Cynthia commented, taking in Hermione’s extraordinarily plain appearance. From her logo-less maroon hat, to her nerdy round glasses, non-assuming grey hoodie, and blue jeans, few would’ve ever recognized her to be _the_ Hermione Granger, smartest Pokemon trainer of her age. 

In fact, when Hermione first stepped off the boat in Pastoria city and walked up to Cynthia claiming to be herself, Cynthia didn’t believe her at first. She’d laughed in the kid’s face, telling her to go play her jokes on someone else until Hermone lifted her hat and recognition sparked through Cynthia's mind. 

Hermione smiled wryly, her features hidden under the shadows of her hat. “I’m not a big fan of flying,” she admitted, absentmindedly patting her Dragonite who was now purring in contentment. Rowlet suddenly perked up from the ground, cured of his nausea, and waddled into the tall grass, excited to explore the new region. 

“Don’t go too far,” Hermione sternly called after him, knowing Rowlet’s penchant for mischief. All she got in response was a defiant chirp. She shook her head. Seven years together and she still never managed to tame his wild spirit. 

“Thank you for guiding me, by the way,” she said to the Champion. “I know you must be busy.” 

“Not at all. It was my pleasure.” In truth, Cynthia was incredibly busy. However, the moment she heard from Steven that Hermione Granger was coming, she dropped everything to accommodate for her arrival. 

“Us Champions gotta stick out for each other, am I right? Besides, I’ve already heard so much about you from Harry, Red, Blue, Wallace, and Steven that I feel like I know you already.”

Hermione blinked once in surprise before reaching up to tug on her cap, pulling it farther down her face. “Is that so?” She smiled in that small, humble way of hers. “I appreciate the sentiment, but I’m not a Champion. Not technically.”

Cynthia smirked at the young eighteen year old girl. No, Hermione Granger was not at all what she imagined her to be. 

“Perhaps not by technicality,” she said gently, “but true all the same.” 

She recalled Steven’s warning over the phone. _“Stay on your toes. Do not underestimate her, Cynthia. You do that, then you’ve lost the match before it even began.”_

To say her interest had been piqued was an understatement. Steven almost never complimented another trainer, especially not so adamantly. So naturally, Cynthia needed to see the Golden Girl of Pokemon for herself. 

She was surprised by what she saw. 

She vividly remembered watching the match between Hermione and Steven on television no less than two weeks ago. It had been broadcasted all over the world and like the rest of the world, Cynthia had tuned in to see the thrilling match, confident that Steven could handle any young trainer thrown his way.

He'd lost. Quite terribly too.

Now, Cynthia was having a hard time believing that the girl standing before her and the girl she saw on TV were one and the same. The auras they gave off were just so...different. 

The girl from the television was arrogant, confident, almost annoyingly cocky as she was so assured of her win. It was as if losing to Steven had never even crossed her mind - that the possibility of losing was never actually a possibility. The small smirk that Hermione adorned during the entirety of the battle no matter what Steven threw at her was now ingrained in Cynthia’s mind. She’d never seen another trainer be so sure of a battle’s outcome and against a Champion nonetheless. 

She’d never wanted to beat another trainer more than she wanted to beat Hermione. 

_‘I’ll show her,’_ Cynthia had thought then whilst sitting on the couch in her living room. _‘Let her come to Sinnoh and I will crush her and her confidence.’_

And come, Hermione did. 

Except, instead of the girl from the television, instead of the infuriating cocky ass trainer who was in over her head that Cynthia had been expecting, the girl that had gotten off the boat was nothing like that at all. 

Hermione, with her kind smile, warm eyes, and half her face hidden underneath a hat and the locks of her bushy hair, looked like any other normal teenager.

It bewildered Cynthia so much she felt as if a Pokemon had used Confusion on her. 

Hermione wasn't the arrogant ass Cynthia had written her off to be at all. In fact, it was quite obvious from the way Hermione held herself and the way she talked, answering questions with only a few quiet but firm and succinct words, that the girl actually hated drawing attention to herself. For the first time in a long time, Cynthia had to reassess her first impression of someone. 

“You better not keep me waiting for too long,” she commented with her usual smirking grin as she sided up next to Garchomp, her eyes flashing with an unspoken challenge. "I'll be expecting you soon." 

Brown eyes flickered up from under the cap, meeting Cynthia’s challenging stare with her own. For the first time since they met, Cynthia saw a hint of that same flash of steel that she’d seen in the girl on TV. 

“I’ll make sure to use my time here wisely,” Hermione replied in that calm tone of hers. The _‘Make sure you do too,’_ went unspoken, but not unheard. 

Cynthia chuckled silently to herself. Oh how wrong she’d been. 

Although Hermione was quiet - a lot quieter than she’d anticipated - she wasn’t shy. Instead of the loud, outward confidence that Cynthia was used to finding in other top Pokemon trainers – herself included – Hermione carried herself with a more quiet, subdued confidence, but confidence nonetheless. 

There was a subtle intensity to the girl, one that was easily overlooked if someone wasn’t looking carefully enough. But now, as Cynthia took a moment to _really_ look at Hermione, she could see how the two girls, the one she saw on TV and the one standing before her, were the same person. 

A wolf in sheep's clothing.

Despite the purposefully disarming and unassuming demeanor Hermione puts on, Cynthia could sense a deadly sense of confidence, pride, and determination from the girl - the same feeling she’d gotten from watching her match against Steven.

Like the sea, she was calm on the surface, but hidden deep beneath the waves and far beyond the shores were wild storms of unending passion. 

And that was when Cynthia realized that Hermione really wasn’t like all those other Pokemon trainers who’d challenged her before. She wasn’t anything at all like those other cocky, misguided Pokemon trainers that liked to spout nonsense about beating her, completely unaware of how outmatched they were. 

Standing in front of her, was a trainer Cynthia _wasn’t so sure_ she could beat. And that, both terrified and excited her. 

Cynthia laughed out loud this time. Perhaps it was the glasses that had led her astray earlier. Either way, she liked this girl. She would have to tell Steven that the next time they phoned each other. 

Turning around, she pulled herself up, remounting Garchomp. It was rather unfortunately that she had to leave. She had places to be and Champion duties to fulfill. As much as she really wanted to battle it out with Hermione right here right now – her Garchomp vs Hermione’s Dragonite – she knew her time would come. Soon. She'd just have to wait a little longer. 

Before she took off, she decided to give the girl one last piece of advice. 

“Get used to the spotlight, kid. You’re going to be in it for a while.” 

The only response Cynthia got was a reluctant nod. Honestly, how had she even survived under the spotlight for as long as she did?

“See ya around then.” With one last nod of acknowledgement, Cynthia took off with her Garchomp. “Next time we meet will be on the battlefield! Hahahaha!” 

Hermione watched the eccentric woman disappear off into the distance in the sky before turning and eyeing Arrowroot Town far off in the distance. She was glad that Cynthia had the tact to land them away from the town. She didn’t want to attract any unnecessary attention and landing in the middle of the city with the Sinnoh region Champion as her guide would’ve definitely attracted a lot of attention. 

She quickly surveyed the long patches of tall grass that stood between her and the town and grinned to herself, feeling the familiar rush of excitement from starting a new adventure wash through her. A whole region of new Pokemon and Pokemon trainers awaited her. She couldn’t wait to begin. 

In fact...why wait? Hermione mentally went over her inventory. If she remembered correctly, she still had a few spare Pokeballs left in her backpack. A detour couldn’t hurt. Her cousin could wait another hour.

A distressed cry sounded through the air. 

Hermione looked up, making eye contact with Dragonite. “That wasn’t Rowlet.”

Dragonite shrugged. They took off in the direction of the cry only to come to a clearing and finding Rowlet being chased by another small black and white bird Pokemon. The moment Rowlet spotted them, he let out a whiny chirp and burrowed himself into Hermione’s open backpack. 

Hermione brought out her Pokedex. 

“Starly, the starling Pokemon. Starlys tend to flock in great numbers. Though small, they flap their wings with great power.”

Hermione pocketed her Pokedex, eyeing the pissed off Starly as Rowlet peeked out from the backpack, glaring at the little bird. 

She sighed to herself in mild amusement. “Honestly Rowlet, how did you get your ass handed to you by a level three Starly?” 

She unclipped an empty Pokeball from her belt.

Here's to her first catch in the new region. 

  
  


* * *

  
  


Hermione ducked her head as she made her way through the crowded town square, grateful for the baseball cap that hid the most of her face. She shuffled her feet towards her destination, trying to remain as inconspicuous as possible.

Despite this being her first trip to the Sinnoh region, her face was plastered all over the media. There was not a single TV channel, newspaper, or magazine cover that did not speak or boast of her name. She was grateful no one recognized her in Pastoria City. 

Arrowroot Town however was a different case. Here, the townspeople were too preoccupied with the upcoming local festivities to leave room for celebration of her latest achievement. Everywhere she looked were decorations that advertised the main event happening in just two days time. 

_‘The Sinnoh Grand Festival.’_

Growing up, Hermione’s fondest memories had been traveling with her mother from town to town, watching her compete in these various Pokemon contests. Though her mother claimed to only be a “decent coordinator,” Hermione later found out the truth when she came upon her mother’s case of contest victory ribbons amongst her other possessions.

Her mom had been one of the best. 

Unfortunately for mommy Granger, Hermione did not take after her mother. Instead, she preferred the excitement of winning gym battles and chasing after legendary Pokemon. 

“Rrrrr!” Rowlet chirped excitedly into her right ear. Hermione turned to look at what had captured Rowlet’s attention. Peering over in the direction of Rowlet’s little outstretched wing, she was pleasantly surprised to see another Rowlet cradled in the arms of another trainer. 

Then she spotted another in the midst of the crowd. And then another...and another…

“Wow,” Hermione murmured under her breath as she felt her own Rowlet poof his feathers up, trying to intimidate the others. “Looks like Rowlets are pretty popular here, huh?” Which was unusual as Hermione rarely ever saw them outside of the Alola region but it was neat to see nonetheless. 

“Trrr! Trrr! Trrr!” Rowlet twittered grumpily, upset at all these other Rowlets trying to steal his thunder. 

“You know you’re still the best,” Hermione tried to appease him. 

“Chrrr.” 

“Behave and I will give you food.”

Rowlet’s demeanor completely changed. He twittered excitedly, hopping from shoulder to shoulder doing his happy dance.

“Ow, ow, ow. Shhh, calm down. People are starting to stare.” She laughed, snatching Rowlet off her shoulders and cuddling the little fireball close to her chest. “Come on buddy. Just a few more minutes."

“Chirrrrrp.” 

After another ten minutes or so of navigating through crowds and looking at her map, Hermione managed to arrive at her destination. 

_‘Lakeside Resort.’_

This was where all one hundred and eight Coordinators were staying for the duration of the Grand Festival.

' _I_ _wonder if the others are here yet.’  
  
_

Her cousin, who was participating in the Grand Festival as a newcomer, had already arrived two days prior. The others — Harry, Ron, and Ginny — were supposed to arrive some time today. It was very likely they’d beaten her here after she’d taken a two hour long detour.   
  


_‘Whoops.’_

Hermione hadn’t seen her cousin in three years, though they kept in touch regularly through Pidgey mail. Last she’d heard, her cousin had finally graduated from her Pokemon University last year and decided to become a Coordinator. 

One year ago, her cousin was a rookie in these contests. Now? She was competing in the Grand Festival.

Hermione couldn’t be prouder. To be able to earn five contest ribbons in a mere three months to qualify for the Grand Festival was no small feat even for a seasoned veteran, let alone a rookie who’d just started. She couldn’t wait to finally see her cousin in action. 

Taking a deep breath to prepare herself – there was no doubt that the hotel would be flooded with people – Hermione walked inside. Immediately upon entry, she ducked her head. 

_Bloody hell._

The lobby was _completely filled_ with Pokemon coordinators and trainers from all over the world. She even recognized a few of them, having ran into them at some point in her journey and battled them for fun. 

Hermione cursed to herself as she scanned the sea of people in front of her. How was she supposed to find her cousin in this crowd?

“Hi! Are you here for the Grand Festival?”

Reflexively, Hermione tugged her hat farther down on her face, ignoring the way her glasses dug uncomfortably into her face, and turned to acknowledge the girl who’d spoken to her. She didn’t care that she probably looked like an absolute weirdo – hats were supposed to go over _heads_ , not _faces._ She was not risking getting recognized here. 

“Yes, I suppose you can say that,” said Hermione, careful not to look directly at the girl. 

“Oh, are you a coordinator? Have you signed in yet? I can help you if you haven’t.” The receptionist tried to peer under the hat at Hermione, trying to see if she recognized her from any Contests before. Her face morphed into an unreadable expression as she noticed the Rowlet in her arms but it smoothed out when she looked back up. Hermione ducked her chin to her neck and avoided the girl’s searching eyes. 

“Not exactly,” Hermione answered, searching the crowd for a familiar face. This double chin thing she got going on was starting to grow uncomfortable. She needed an out fast. “I’m here for my cousin actually. She’s competing tomorrow.”

The receptionist nodded but she still stared at Hermione suspiciously. Hermione recognized the glint in her eyes and could sense that she was on the verge of immediate danger of being recognized. The girl probably found her face extremely familiar but couldn’t recall exactly where she’d seen it.   
  


  
“Perhaps you can help me find her,” said Hermione. “Her name is—“

“I’m sorry,” the girl interrupted. Hermione tensed, knowing what was coming next. “But you seem very familiar. Have we met before? Or maybe you were on TV somewhere? I’m an avid fan of Pokemon and Pokemon Contests. So I probably know your face from there,” the receptionist explained. 

Hermione gave a tight smile and shook her head. “No. I don’t really do Pokemon Contests, so it’s probably not from there."

The girl frowned. “Are you sure? You do seem familiar though. Like _really_ familiar. I can’t put my finger on it. Are you sure you’ve never competed?”

Hermione chuckled nervously, desperately hoping for this conversation to end. “Nope. Never competed in a Contest. Not even once.”

“If you say so,” the girl eventually gave up with a frown. It was clear that she didn’t believe Hermione. 

Hermione awkwardly bid the receptionist farewell and weaved into the crowd, well aware of the pair of watchful eyes on her. Instead of worrying too much about it, she decided to focus her efforts on looking for a weird hat or a pair of mismatched funky socks or – 

Hermione stumbled as she was unceremoniously shoved forward. She turned around, eyes dropping to waist level at the culprit. 

“Toooooooggg~ Kisssu! Kiii tosss tosss!” 

And just like that, her annoyance at being pushed dissipated. 

“Why hello there,” Hermione laughed, bending over to greet the playful Pokemon that had headbutted her. 

When the Togekiss insistently nudged her hand with its head, Hermione’s grin widened, happily obliging its need to be petted. “Where’s your trainer, hm?” she cooed. 

“Rrrr. Rrrr,” Rowlet chittered curiously from above Hermione’s shoulder. 

Delighted at the prospect of a new friend, Togekiss flew up to the owl Pokemon and gave it a fluttering kiss. 

“Kiii tosss tosss!” 

Rowlet chirped in alarm, trying to get away from Togekiss’s touchy advances. It flew in circles around Hermione’s head as it dodged Togekiss’s unrelenting attempts of spreading love. 

“Woah, woah. Rowlet, stop that. You’re going to make me dizzy. Hey! – ”

Hermione tripped and found herself falling into the arms of another person. She immediately straightened up, apologizing profusely as the distinct smell of vanilla perfume hit her nose. When she looked up, she was met with the most startling blue eyes. 

“Woah…”

The girl appeared amused. Hermione couldn’t help but get drawn in by her smirk. 

“Was my Togekiss bozering you?”

“Um…” 

The girl suddenly frowned, breaking Hermione out of her trance. Hermione stepped away, tugging down on her hat. The girl watched her with a discerning eye and though Hermione should have been worried about her identity being found out, she was more worried about wrestling this terrible blush under control.   
  


  
Funny how her priorities rearranged themselves around a pretty girl.

“Fleur! Togekiss!” 

Hermione looked over the beautiful girl’s shoulder – Fleur was her name as she just now learned – as two other girls approached them. She straightened her glasses and noted with quite a bit of interest that the shorter of the two girls held a mild resemblance to this Fleur. Sisters then, she deduced. 

“Sorry about that. I tried to stop Togekiss earlier but I couldn’t get through ze crowd. Togekiss tends to just wander off and eenteract with strangers,” said the supposed younger sister. 

“Tooogg Kisss!” Togekiss playfully nudged Hermione with its wing. 

“No worries,” Hermione smiled. She looked up fondly at Togekiss who was floating contently next to an exhausted Rowlet. Oh Rowlet. How typical. “Togekiss was very much welcomed,” she said, beaming up at the Pokemon.

“Tooooogggg~kissssu!” it chirped back in response in its elegant voice. 

“Well, Togekiss seems to like you so you cannot be that bad,” the younger sister continued. “They tend to dreeft towards kind ‘earted people, did you know?” 

Hermione nodded. She’d learned that tidbit of information after she hatched her own Togepi a few years ago. 

“Anyways, you should really keep better watch of your Pokemon,” said the girl, turning towards Fleur. “Zis is like ze seventh time Togekiss ‘as run off _today_.”

“Eet iz not my fault she iz a free-speerited Pokemon, Gabrielle,” said Fleur. “You try stoping ‘er.” 

While the two of them conversed back and forth, their third companion eyed Hermione suspiciously, taking in her appearance with a critical eye. Hermione tried not to fidget. She just wanted to get out of here and find her cousin. Was that so hard?

“‘Ave I seen you before? Are you a contestant?” Her eyes narrowed. “You are not from this region, are you?”

Hermione raised an eyebrow, shocked at the shrewd deduction. “Er no. I’m not.” She chose her next words very carefully, lest she accidentally gave away too much information and revealed her identity. “I’m also not a contestant. I don’t really do Pokemon Contests. I’m just here to support my cousin. She’s a coordinator from this region.”

This caught Gabrielle’s attention. “Really? You’re not a coordinator?” Her lips curled into a mischievous smirk. “Wait, do you even know ‘oo we are?”

Hermione stared at the three girls in confusion, completely taken aback by the random question as they stared expectantly at her. Usually she was the one being recognized, not the other way around. This was a new development. Was she _supposed_ to know them? None of them looked familiar. And she would’ve definitely remembered if she saw someone as pretty as...as pretty as Fleur. 

She shook her head slowly.

“No, sorry.” She eyed them cautiously. “Am I supposed to?”

There was an awkward pause before Gabrielle broke into a gleeful laughter. 

“Wow, I never zought I would live to see ze day zat a Pokemon trainer would not know ‘oo _ze_ Fleur Delacour was at a Pokemon Contest,” she beamed up at Hermione. “You really are a complete newbie at zis, aren’t you?”

Hermione could only give a bashful smile. She had her own reasons for never watching a single beauty contest after her mother passed away. It was only because she wanted to support her cousin that Hermione broke her streak of unattendance. 

“I’m Gabrielle,” the girl introduced herself before pointing to the one named Fleur. Hermione tried not to stare or flinch as she looked directly into intense blues. 

“Zis iz Fleur, my sister, and ze current four-time winning Top Coordinator," Gabrielle said with a wink, confirming Hermione’s sister hypothesis. “And zis one ‘ere iz Amelie. We are kind of a big deal in ze Contest world. Eet iz rare to meet a trainer 'oo does not recognize us, eespeecially at _ze_ Grand Contest event.”

“I see. Sorry again,” Hermione apologized. “I don’t really watch Pokemon Contests.”

To her surprise, Fleur scoffed, her face contorting with lines of disgust. “Let me guess. You are a gym-rat with ze goal of obtaining all ze gym badges in ze world and you idolize ‘ermione Granger.” She stared disdainfully at Hermione’s Rowlet. “Maybe a leetle too much.” 

Hermione was completely taken aback. Rowlet let out a low, threatening chitter and she instinctively held him back, not wanting any trouble. 

“Not exactly,” Hermione responded hesitantly with a hint of humor in her voice after her initial shock at the outburst died away. She wouldn’t necessarily say she idolized herself exactly, but Fleur wasn’t _completely_ wrong. 

Fleur scoffed again. 

“Not a fan of Hermione Granger?” Hermione asked, amusement coloring her tone. Just her luck that she would meet a pretty girl who hated her guts. 

She'd never really met anyone who hated her before. People always idolized the ground she walked on. It was a refreshing change actually. Though she wondered what’d she done to offend the girl so much. Hermione was pretty sure she’d never met her in her life. 

She definitely would’ve remembered. 

“Don’t mind my sister,” said Gabrielle. “She’s just bitter. Once I saw ‘er eat a bowl of coffee powder for breakfast. _Dry_.”

“I'm not bitter,” Fleur protested. “I just don’t like people ‘oo go around worshipping ze girl’s every step. She’s not _zat_ good of a trainer, you know? Zey act like she’s some sort of god or whatever and it iz dis-gus-ting. Just because you have ze same Pokemon team as ‘er, does not make you a strong Pokemon trainer, you know. It just makes you a copycat. A Deetto. A fake. ‘Ow do you zink I got to where am I today? By finding my own path and creating my own style, zat’s ‘ow.”

Rowlet chirped angrily from inside Hermione’ embrace, offended on behalf of its owner. 

“Trr! Trr! Trr! Trr! Trr! Trr! Trrrrrr! Trr! Trr! Trr!” He flapped his wings and kicked his little owl legs with great indignation. 

“Ow! Rowlet! Ow! Stop!” Hermione flailed about as she struggled to keep ahold of him. 

“See? You can’t even control ‘im,” said Fleur disdainfully. 

Hermione wanted to tell Fleur that she didn’t even know the half of it. Training Rowlet had _always_ been an impossible task. 

“Please, Rowlet, calm down. Food! Remember! I have food!” The effect was instantaneous. Rowlet deflated again, though he eyed Fleur with squinted eyes, his head tilted one hundred eighty degrees to the side. Hermione sighed a breath of relief and looked up into stubborn blue eyes. She could tell Fleur didn’t regret a word. 

To be fair, Hermione wasn't even a bit offended by her comments. In fact, she found them rather amusing because she actually shared the same sentiments. She always thought that trainers should develop their own techniques instead of copying others. 

“Toooog~” Togekiss flew in between Hermione and Fleur, not liking the tension in the air. Using its wings, it pushed them two together, forcing them to get along. “Kiii tosss tosss!” 

Hermione turned her head away, cheeks turning embarrassingly pink, as their faces were pushed into each other. How did she end up like this?

“That’s enough, Togekiss,” Fleur said sternly, fighting against the Pokemon’s hold. “Stop messing around.” 

“Tog, Tog,” the Pokemon insisted firmly. 

Fleur sighed while Hermione wanted to laugh. Who was it that couldn’t control her Pokemon now?

Fleur glanced over reluctantly, her eyes clearly showing how annoyed she was to be forced into such a situation.

"Kiiii! Tosss! Tossss! Kisssu!" 

Fleur sighed in defeat. “I… apologize…”

Hermione waited for more but that was the end of her apology. 

“Kisss. Kisss. Kisss.” Togekiss was not satisfied by the half-hearted apology. It pushed them even closer together. “Kisss. Kisss. Kisss.” 

“Yeah, listen to Togekiss,” Gabrielle chimed in teasingly from the side. Hermione couldn’t see her as her face had been turned away, but she could hear the mischief and sheer joy in her voice. “You heard the boss. Kiss. Kiss. Kiss. Kiss.” 

“Kisss. Kisss. Kisss. Kisss.” Togekiss joined happily in on the chant. 

“Trrr! Trrr!” Rowlet protested, kicking at Fleur with his little legs that couldn’t reach.

Fleur glared at her sister before facing the girl in front of her. Their noses were inches from each other and it took all of Hermione’s will power not to combust on the spot. 

“I apologize,” Fleur gritted out, “for making fun of you. To each zeir own, I suppose.” 

“I accept your apology,” Hermione mumbled, too flustered by how close their faces were to concentrate on anything else. Besides, it wasn’t as if there was any real harm done. 

“Tooooog~” Togekiss released them, finally satisfied, and proceeded to rub its head into Hermione’s waist. Rowlet eyed it warily, making sure it kept its touchy self away from him. 

“Well, it was nice meeting you,” Fleur said flatly. “I ‘ope you find your cousin. Good day.” She turned and left, leaving Gabrielle and Amelie behind, shaking their heads in disapproval. 

“I’m sorry about my sister. She’s a good person, really,” said Gabrielle. “Deep, deep, deep, _deeeep_ down inside. She just ‘as ‘er moments.” 

Hermione gave her a small reassuring smile. “Don’t worry, I know. It was as you said, Togekiss are attracted to kind hearted people right? I know she didn’t mean any harm.” 

Gabrielle appraised Hermione with a once-over. “Right...I did say zat.” She hummed to herself, self-satisfied for some reason as a small smile grew on her lips. 

“See you around? You are staying ‘ere to watch the contest, right?”

Hermione nodded hesitantly. A part of her wanted to see Fleur again but something told her the blonde didn't feel the same way. 

“Perfect. Until next time zen stranger! I 'ave to go catch my sister now.” 

They left, chasing after Fleur in the crowd. It wasn’t until after Gabrielle found her sister again, pouting grumpily to herself in a corner, that she realized they never got the stranger’s name. 

**Author's Note:**

> ...I can already feel this fic spinning out of my control.  
> Three parts, _please_ let me finish this in three parts.


End file.
